Shutdown of Sky Global

It developed the world's largest encrypted messaging network called Sky ECC,[1] operating through three servers of the OVHcloud company in Roubaix, France.

[2] A significant share of the system's users were international crime organizations involved in drug trafficking, and the company management was suspected of collusion.

In a series of police raids against criminal organizations in several countries in early 2021, a part of Sky's infrastructure in Western Europe was dismantled, and US Department of Justice issued an arrest warrant against the company's CEO Jean-François Eap.

[10] 171,000 SKY ECC devices were registered, mainly in Europe, North America, several central and South American countries – mainly Colombia – and the Middle East.

The Belgian police said the network they had broken into was so trusted by its criminal users that images of torture, execution orders, insider financial and operational information were freely sent.

[14][10] Sky Global said they were "actively investigating and pursuing legal action against the offending individuals for impersonation, false lights, trademark infringement, injurious falsehood, defamation and fraud".

"[11] On March 12, 2021, the US Department of Justice in San Diego, California, issued an indictment against Sky Global's CEO, Jean-François Eap, and a former distributor, Thomas Herdman.

The indictment states that the Sky Global's devices are "specifically designed to prevent law enforcement from actively monitoring the communications between members of transnational criminal organizations involved in drug trafficking and money laundering.

"[15] In response, Eap has published a statement branding the allegations as false, saying that he and his company are being "targeted" because they "build tools to protect the fundamental right to privacy."